Mauritania Needs Help After Floods Kill Two - Minister
Date: 13-Aug-07
Country: MAURITANIA
Author: Ibrahima Sylla
Tintane, a town of 10,000 near Mauritania's southeastern border with Mali, was hit last week by heavy rains running off nearby mountains that affected more than 2,000 homes, Economy and Finance Minister Abderrahmane Ould Hamma Vezzaz said.
"Several people were injured, others disappeared and the town has been three-quarters destroyed according to accounts from travellers, who say the water also carried off much of the livestock," he told diplomats and donors late on Saturday.
"The mud-built houses suffered a lot," he said. Two people were confirmed dead, but Ould Vezzaz could not confirm how many more were still missing.
"I appeal to international solidarity, notably our development partners." he added.
"The situation is under control, but we are facing problems with food, safety, electricity and providing drinking water, since the water supply network was washed away by the violent tide of water."
Schools, health facilities, roads and market places were also damaged or destroyed, he said, adding that authorities were looking for alternative sites to rebuild houses for residents prepared to move from low-lying districts.
Seasonal rains have arrived across large swathes of West Africa in the past few weeks, giving relief to rural farmers who can now plant their crops, but also bringing devastation to some low-lying and densely populated areas.
Mauritania lies at the western edge of the Sahara and is mostly arid for much of the year, except during the seasonal summer rains which can be torrential.
